Companies lay off workers as crude falls below $50

Published 12:06 pm, Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Standing water reflects the sunset behind a pumpjack near the intersection of S County Rd 1130 and Interstate 20 on Wednesday. James Durbin/Reporter-Telegram

Standing water reflects the sunset behind a pumpjack near the intersection of S County Rd 1130 and Interstate 20 on Wednesday. James Durbin/Reporter-Telegram

Companies lay off workers as crude falls below $50

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As crude prices sank below $50 a barrel, a number of oil industry firms announced layoffs, most of which are expected to impact the Permian Basin.

-- Apache Corp.: No specific numbers were announced, but a company spokeswoman said less than 5 percent of Apache’s 5,000-member workforce would be impacted. The layoffs include the Midland office, she said.

-- Big D Equipment is laying off workers in both Midland and Odessa, but Don Tomlin, company president, wouldn’t specify how many.

A company spokesman said the process began in the fourth quarter of 2014 and will end later this year. He didn’t have site-specific figures but said the cutbacks would be across the organization and will undoubtedly affect the company’s estimated 3,000 employees in the Permian Basin.

-- Baker Hughes plans to cut 7,000 of its more than 62,000 positions worldwide, an approximate 11 percent cut. A spokeswoman did not yet have information on how many Permian Basin positions would be involved.

-- Halliburton, which is in the process of acquiring Baker Hughes, is expected to announce cutbacks in its North American workforce. The company in December said it would cut 1,000 positions from its workforce in the Eastern Hemisphere.